Buyer protection
Donkey milk knowledge archive · Organisation & authority
Italian Senate 2024: a bill to promote donkey milk production
In February 2024 eight senators introduced bill S. 1015 in the Italian Senate to promote the production of donkey milk. It provides for a 5 million euro fund and a voluntary label; so far the bill has not been debated.
- Author
- Senator Daisy Pirovano and seven co-signatories (group Lega Salvini Premier – Partito Sardo d’Azione), Senato della Repubblica
- Work
- Disegno di legge S. 1015 “Misure per incentivare l’incremento della produzione del latte d’asina italiano destinato al consumo umano” (measures to increase the production of Italian donkey milk for human consumption), 19th legislature
- Passage
- Explanatory statement (relazione) and arts. 1–6; pp. 5–7 of the Senate’s Fascicolo Iter
- Time & place
- introduced on 6 February 2024 · Italy (Rome)
- Type of source
- Parliamentary bill
In the original words
What the original says
Il latte d'asina è un alimento molto antico. Intorno al suo consumo si sono consolidati nel tempo usi e tradizioni di diversi popoli.
Donkey milk is a very old food. Over time, customs and traditions of various peoples have become established around its consumption.
L'asina infatti ha una capacità produttiva di latte molto limitata, in media circa quattro litri al giorno, e solo nel periodo in cui vi è il puledro.
The jenny in fact has a very limited milk yield, on average about four litres a day, and only during the period when the foal is with her.
Nello stato di previsione del Ministero dell'agricoltura, della sovranità alimentare e delle foreste è istituito un fondo con una dotazione di 5 milioni di euro per l'anno 2024, allo scopo di sostenere gli investimenti finalizzati all'incremento e al miglioramento della produzione del latte d'asina
A fund of 5 million euros for the year 2024 is established in the budget of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests to support investments aimed at increasing and improving donkey milk production.
English rendering: our own translation by the DON DONKEY’S editorial team, following the sense of the text.
Background
Who, when, what kind of text
In the Italian parliament, individual members can introduce bills. Bill S. 1015 was tabled on 6 February 2024 and assigned on 22 February 2024 to the Senate’s 9th Committee (industry, trade, tourism, agriculture and food production). According to the Senate’s data sheet, examination has not yet begun; the text is therefore not law in force.
In Italy, donkey milk has been produced commercially for several decades; several regional donkey breeds are now also kept for milk. The bill is therefore above all a document of agricultural policy: it shows how a parliament describes donkey milk as a product of rural regions and as a niche market worth supporting.
Content
What the source reports about donkey milk
The explanatory statement calls donkey milk a very old food that Greeks and Romans already valued. It refers to renewed scientific interest since the 1990s in applications in food and cosmetics. The bill’s health-related justifications, which also shape articles 1 and 2, are statements of the sponsors and are not reproduced here.
As an economic problem the text names the low milk yield: on average about four litres a day, and only while the foal is with the jenny. This, it says, makes the milk expensive, hard to obtain and unattractive for investment. Article 3 therefore provides for a fund of 5 million euros for 2024 at the Ministry of Agriculture, for investment, supply chains, better animal husbandry on farms, innovation and promotion.
Article 4 would create a voluntary label for donkey milk, its design to be chosen by an ideas competition. According to article 3, production is subject to the general hygiene rules, including EU Regulation 852/2004; under article 5, checks would fall to the state food fraud inspectorate. For direct sale of raw donkey milk from the farm, the bill refers to an existing law of 2022.
At a glance
Figures & facts from the source
Fact check
Recorded or just told?
Italy has recognised donkey milk by law as a food eligible for support.
This is a bill tabled by individual senators. It was assigned to a committee in 2024, and according to the Senate its examination has not yet begun. None of its provisions is in force.
Critical assessment
How reliable is this source?
Type of source
An official parliamentary document, available verbatim with its procedural status on the Senate website. It reflects the position of its sponsors, not that of a government or authority.
Substance of the figures
The explanatory statement cites no sources. The figure of about four litres of milk a day is a general estimate; in practice it depends heavily on breed, husbandry, lactation stage and milking frequency.
Today’s assessment
The bill shows political interest in donkey milk as a regional product. Its health-related statements are not authorised claims under food law; donkey milk is a food.
Our assessment
After the question in the Indian parliament, this is a second example of donkey milk reaching parliaments. What interests us most is the sober part of the bill: small milk volumes, high costs and the question of how small farms can invest.
References
Sources to check
- Primary sourceSenato della Repubblica, 19th legislature, Atto Senato no. 1015: data sheet with legislative history, assignment and status
https://www.senato.it/leg/19/BGT/Schede/Ddliter/57936.htm - SupplementaryFascicolo Iter DDL S. 1015 (Senate PDF): explanatory statement on p. 5, bill text arts. 1–6 on pp. 6–7
https://www.senato.it/leg/19/BGT/Schede/FascicoloSchedeDDL/ebook/57936.pdf
More sources and studies in the research archive. Summarised by the DON DONKEY’S editorial team, as of November 2026.